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Your brain on ChatGPT: How to use AI without losing your smarts

  • Writer: Michel
    Michel
  • Jun 28
  • 4 min read

Generative AI tools like ChatGPT are everywhere helping us write, research, code, and make decisions. But are they making us smarter, or just making us rely on them more? A new 2024 study from MIT shows what really happens in our brains when we use AI for thinking. The results are important for teachers, business leaders, and anyone using digital tools.[1]


What happens to the brain when we use AI?

Illustration of a brain with its left hemisphere composed of flowers and leaves, representing nature and creativity, and the right hemisphere depicted with circuit-like patterns and data lines, symbolizing technology and logic.

MIT researchers asked 54 students to write SAT-style essays. One group used ChatGPT, another used a search engine, and the last group wrote with no help. They measured how much the students remembered, how good their writing was, and their brain activity. The results were surprising: 83% of ChatGPT users couldn’t remember a single sentence they wrote after just four minutes. Only 11% of students who wrote without help had the same problem. Brain scans showed that ChatGPT users had 50% fewer connections in their brains during the task. The researchers called this “cognitive debt.”[1]


What is cognitive debt?

Infographic showing two human head outlines: one labeled 'AI-Assisted' with sparse neural connections and low memory recall (11%), and one labeled 'Unassisted' with dense connections and high recall (83%), illustrating cognitive debt.

Cognitive debt means we take mental shortcuts when we let AI do the work for us. We accept the answer without really thinking about it. In psychology, this is called shallow processing: if you don’t think deeply about something, you’re less likely to remember it. People also tend to trust AI too much, even when it’s wrong. Brain scans showed that people using AI had less activity in the parts of the brain that help with memory and attention.[2][3]


Not all AI use is the same


But there’s good news! When students wrote their essays first and only used ChatGPT to edit or improve their work, the results were much better. Their brains were more active, their writing was better, and they felt more proud of their work. The researchers call this “Delay-Then-Augment” i.e., do the thinking yourself first, then let AI help. This way, you learn more and remember better.[1]


Six smart ways to use AI

Businessman holding a digital tablet with a glowing AI icon in the center, surrounded by technology-related symbols like cloud computing, gears, data, and atoms, representing artificial intelligence applications.

Want to use AI in a way that helps you learn? Try these tips:

  1. Write first. Then use AI: Start with your own ideas, then let AI help you edit or improve.

  2. Ask AI to challenge you: Use ChatGPT to question your ideas and make your arguments stronger.

  3. Quiz yourself: Ask ChatGPT to test you on your work. If you can’t answer, review your ideas.

  4. Ask for explanations: Always ask AI to explain its answers step by step. This helps you spot mistakes.

  5. Talk it out: Use AI as a helper to organize your thoughts, but don’t let it do all the thinking.

  6. Reverse prompt: Ask ChatGPT to guess what you were trying to ask. If it gets it wrong, make your writing clearer.


What this means for learning and work


This research matters for everyone because it highlights the importance of teaching not just when, but how to use AI effectively. Teachers have a responsibility to guide students in developing smart AI habits that encourage critical thinking rather than passive acceptance. Employers and managers should recognize that while AI can speed up tasks, it may also cause employees to lose their ability to think deeply and solve problems independently if overused. Additionally, community leaders must ensure that everyone has access to digital tools and the necessary training to use them wisely, so that technology supports strong thinking skills rather than replacing them.[4]


The bottom line: Use AI to help, not replace your brain


The MIT study gives us a clear message: when we do our own thinking and let AI help, we get smarter. But if we let AI do all the work, we lose important thinking skills. The real question isn’t whether to use AI, but how we use it. Let’s use AI to boost our minds, not replace them.[1]


Conclusion


AI is a powerful tool that can boost our abilities if we use it the right way. The key is to lead with our own thinking and let AI support us, not replace us. By understanding and managing cognitive debt, we can harness AI to enhance learning, creativity, and innovation without losing our mental edge.


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References


  1. Kleiman-Weiner, R. (2024). "How ChatGPT Makes You Dumb: The first study of ChatGPT’s cognitive effects reveals disturbing results." Substack Article.

    https://ruben.substack.com/p/how-chatgpt-makes-you-dumb 

  2. Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). "Levels of processing: A framework for memory research." Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11(6), 671–684.

    https://www.simplypsychology.org/levelsofprocessing.html

  3. Kahana, M. J. (2006). "The cognitive correlates of human brain oscillations." Journal of Neuroscience, 26(6), 1669–1672.

    https://www.jneurosci.org/content/26/6/1669

  4. Mayer-Schönberger, V., & Cukier, K. (2013). Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15815598-big-data


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